Tsurezuregusa
by Saimyosho
Summary: The most precious thing in life is uncertainty. IYxYYH
1. Recap

_(Note: Beginning of quest - 1496/1996; end of quest - 1501/2001; peace treaty proposal - 1503; start of treaty - 1509; Kaede's death - 1511/2011)_

 **Prologue**

 _Japan, 1511_

With Naraku's demise and the completion of the five-year crusade for the jewel, a brief period of peace settled over Japan. People came together despite their differences to rebuild communities, showing the strength of a nation united. Two years following the devastating battle there came an announcement from the Emperor: a proposed peace agreement between demons and humans. Outrage followed by riots and massacres ushered in a dark age that bred further hostility between two opposing species. Despite the turmoil that raged, diplomatic meetings commenced in June of 1503. It soon became clear Go-Kashiwabara had not considered that youkai had a different form of politics and were not a consolidated front but four territories acting in their own interests. Negotiations took a full six years in which time Lord Fusao of the North, an elderly panther, and Lord Akimichi of the South, an even older ookami, were assassinated in an attempt to halt further discussions. Kouga had married Akimichi's daughter Ayame and inherited his father-in-law's lordship. In a smart move, he promptly extended an offer for alliance with Sesshomaru. They had no prior relationship but came to the realization that they both shared a vision for an undivided Japan using the treaty as a foundation. The Northern lands swiftly fell into a full-scale civil war as Fusao had left no living heir. Many a vassal made an attempt at the throne but were thwarted by Sesshomaru and Kouga, who had instantly mobilized their forces to take the land for their own and struck while the iron was hot. Conflict stopped as immediately as it had started; no one wished to wage war with the great and fearsome Inu no Taishou, and the lands fell without much effort. With three-quarters of the territories and resources at their command, the Dragon Lord Ryuunosuke was inclined to join their proposed alliance and agree to the terms of the treaty. Humans were now required to not only respect the laws and boundaries of their own daimyo, but their youkai counterparts as well. No longer would demons ravage countrysides, terrorize villages and kill without consequence. Among other changes, every adult and child would be carefully accounted for in an annual census to ensure that no group grew too powerful to overthrow the other.

With all of these changes, Inuyasha and his group of friends had little time to readjust to their new lives as heroes of Japan. The seven-day campaign had left them all scarred and weary. Naraku had managed to collect more than half the shards, tipping the scales in his favor, but in the end, it hadn't mattered because the Shikon had called to it's missing part, becoming whole in a blinding array of lights and was immediately absorbed back into Kagome's body in an anticlimactic addition to their battle. Ultimately, the incarnations were picked off one by one until Naraku was ripped to shreds against the power of Inuyasha's Meidou Zangetsuha. Villages mourned the losses of their husbands and sons who had volunteered to fight alongside the band of warriors. Hordes of youkai, some who had been directly affected by the Shikon, and some, who simply despised Naraku, fought valiantly but fell at a simple sweep of Kagura's fan. The Inu-tachi spent an additional week burying the dead and coming to terms with their own losses. Kohaku, slain in battle, used his final breaths to ask his sister to remember him as he was before the war. Sango and Kirara had made the trek to their old village to bury him next to the rest of their fallen family and held a small vigil. Kikyo had finally welcome death and her body was laid to rest in a large ceremony performed by Kaede as a final goodbye.

Free of his promise to join Kikyo in hell, Inuyasha spent several years helping to rebuild anything destroyed by the black touch of Naraku. He eventually settled down with Rin, who had become a lovely young woman, and together they founded a town for hanyou outcasts. Miroku and Sango had married and taken up a nomadic lifestyle; combining Sango's understanding of youkai traditions and Miroku's sutras to protect villages from an occasional straggler, they established several schools in each corner of the nation to teach humans to safely live alongside demons. After three children and ten years of wandering, they came back to Kaede's village. Miroku assumed the position of resident monk with his daughter taking up as a shrine maiden while Sango became an instructor, training her sons in the ways of demon hunters. Shippo joined Inuyasha and Rin after spending some time at a kitsune school to hone his craft. He assisted in the diplomatic affairs of running the place, as he had, like a true fox, become quite a charming individual. He often was sent as Inuyasha's proxy to various figureheads to curry favor, eventually managing to secure several agreements with local daimyo who pledged their resources to the quickly expanding sanctuary.

For most of the Inu-tachi, life had become simple-even harmonious; their long and perilous journey had finally come to an end.


	2. Reminisce

**Chapter One**

 _Higurashi Shrine - Tokyo, Japan - October 2011_

Kagome Higurashi, Miko of the Shikon no Tama, lived quietly inside the walls of her family shrine. She had given up her adventures in the feudal era after coming to the conclusion that she simply didn't belong. She missed plumbing, she missed having modern medicine, and most of all, Kagome ached at night for her family, who she had wordlessly left behind in the final two years of the quest. After a tearful goodbye, she had jumped into the well, ignoring the sad ring of faces looking down at her. Things became even more difficult when she came home. Nobody said it, but Kagome could plainly see they had thought her dead or never coming back. She had missed Souta's high school graduation and his acceptance into the top university with a full scholarship. Life had gone on for everyone. It was three months before Kagome could manage to say more than a sentence without crying. Being at home seemed so wrong. At first she had formulated a plan to split her time between the past and the present, but found that the well would not allow her through. Another period of silence plagued the Higurashi household. Every day was otherwise unfulfilling, so Kagome worked diligently to complete high school and obtained a Bachelor's degree in Physics from a modest college so she could attempt to understand the magic of the well, but to no avail-science indicated that time travel as she had experienced it shouldn't even be possible. Old friends now held full-time jobs or were engaged, so she was left with nobody to talk to but herself. And she found that suited her just fine.

When she closed her eyes she thought of the days she was able to stroll through tall, wild grass and sleep with an uninhibited view of the bright, swirling Milky Way. She dreamt of her wonderful friends: Inuyasha, in his signature fire-rat robes, and his silver ears as he slept in the arms of the Goshinboku. Miroku, with his eternally splotchy left cheek, patiently teaching a teary-eyed Shippo to read and write. Sango, expertly polishing her Hiraikotsu and sneaking looks at the handsome monk when she thought no one was watching. And sometimes, when Kagome slept fitfully, she dreamt of a resurrected Naraku. Always, she awoke and cried silently into her pillows until sunrise. Before she knew it, almost a decade had passed since she jumped through the well for the final time. Some days she woke up and didn't recognize the person she had become. She would see Kikyo in the mirror in passing only to realize that it was her reflection that stared back at her. She grew out her bangs and tried makeup, but gave up when she realized that the resemblance was unavoidable now that she had grown older. Kagome had concocted many possible happy endings while she hunted for the shards, thinking she would be rewarded for her bravery and courage at the end of the quest. Of all the ridiculous things she had envisioned for herself, she had never thought that the Shikon would re-enter her body with nobody any wiser on how to make a wish on it and destroy it for good. At one point she thought she would gain abilities beyond compare, the most powerful priestess since Midoriko! And then, in the midst of battle, she had noticed rather despairingly that her arrows shined no more brilliantly or powerfully than before. She nearly tore her hair out with frustration when she had instantaneously become a giant target for all of Naraku's minions and spent the rest of the fight hiding behind Inuyasha and his Tetsusaiga. Her healing powers were still mediocre to say the least, and she could barely get a bruise to fade, let alone heal a sprained ankle. If she were to be completely honest, she could barely feel the power of the jewel; it was almost as if it had just disappeared inside of her body and ceased to exist. More importantly, she had no proof of her time in the past-no jewel, useless purifying arrows, and not even any healing powers to soothe the occasional paper cut. She had no friends, no powers, and no purpose to her life.

On the tenth anniversary of her return home, there was a soft knock at the shrine. The thought of someone coming to visit at midnight was concerning, so Kagome peeked out her window to catch a glimpse of who it could possibly be. A glimmer of silver hair was all it took and she and ran frantically down the stairs, stumbling in her haste. Heart racing and breath hitched, she threw open the door. He looked slightly older, but nonetheless like the Inuyasha she remembered. He entered the house with a respectful bow to her mother and grandfather, who had woken abruptly due to the commotion. He sat in the living room and spoke about his beautiful young wife, his work, and the many changes that had taken place. He spoke of Miroku and Sango's three mischievous children and their difficulty in keeping the taijiya ways when there were no more youkai to be fought. Over Mrs. Higurashi's special blend of tea, they all listened intently to Inuyasha's stories and ate Rin's famous sweet mochi, made fresh that day. He asked how they had been the past ten years, then apologized for not visiting sooner. They talked about everything and nothing while Kagome sat wordlessly. When the sun started to peek over the mountains, Inuyasha apologized again for keeping them up all night and bid a good day to the Higurashi household. Kagome walked him out of the house, fidgeting as he turned to face her in front of the Goshinboku. She twisted her hands in the thick cotton sweater she wore and suddenly felt very uncomfortable in her skin. The sunrise hurt her eyes and the chill of the crisp morning air was keeping her on edge as she waited for something to happen.

"Kagome."

She suddenly felt a prickling in her eyes and a burning in her cheeks. She tried to look anywhere but directly at him.

"Kagome," Inuyasha softly repeated.

When she could finally peer up at him through big, glassy tears, he smiled gently at her and she couldn't repress the tidal wave of emotion. She ran into his arms and cried-cried for missing him, cried for missing her friends, cried for memories long gone, and cried just to cry.


	3. Return

**Chapter Two**

 _Higurashi Shrine - Tokyo, Japan - October 2011_

"What are you doing here?"

Her voice cracked, but she hoped Inuyasha didn't catch it or didn't care. She grabbed a fistful of his haori and breathed in his familiar woodsy scent. As Kagome pulled away and looked into his face, she saw just how much he had matured; he didn't react with embarrassment like he used to-in fact, he seemed glad for her tears. The idea that he had changed so drastically pained her and only caused the chasm of loneliness inside her to grow. She snapped out of her daze as she realized Inuyasha had started speaking.

"Kaede is ill. The healers say she may only have a few more weeks left," he said.

It just sounded like static from an old radio.

"What?" she asked weakly.

Her fingers trembled and she felt herself start to sink slowly to the ground before Inuyasha's hands steadied her.

"Kaede is dying," he repeated.

But Kagome wasn't sad or surprised, instead she was regretfully unregretful. She felt dejected that Inuyasha only came back to tell her about Kaede's poor health, not to whisk her back through time to be with him and the others.

The droning in her ears grew louder and she swallowed the thick lump in her throat before croaking, "I can't go back. I stopped trying to go back years ago. It-the well won't let me through."

Inuyasha shrugged, a gesture so heartbreakingly familiar that she felt the air leave her lungs. His arms folded across his chest as he cast his gaze to the well house.

"To be honest, I was surprised it let _me_ back through. I tried a couple times after you left to convince you to visit once in a while, but I just ended up with a couple stubbed toes. After a few months I figured you had closed it. I just had a feeling that I would be able to see you today and went for it."

Kagome breathed in deeply and managed a shaky smile.

"You've changed so much, Inuyasha."

His name seemed strange in her mouth although she had woken up mumbling it more than a hundred times. Even the bright yellow eyes she had stared into so many nights seemed different now.

"Keh."

The hanyou grinned and pinched at the hem of her fluffy blue turtleneck.

"You're covering up more in your old age, huh? You're definitely way too old to be running around in those short skirts!"

She let out her first genuine, albeit shaky, laugh in ten years.

"I'm definitely way too old for that," she agreed. "I'm happy that I got to see you and that everyone else is doing great. I'm so glad for you and Rin-chan and the things you're doing."

His triangular ears perked at the finality in her voice.

"Hey, you have to come back with me! Kaede's last wish is to see us all together. That's why I came back!"

Her knees started to shake again and she turned away from him. Thin fingers traced the gnarled bark of the Goshinboku and the slight notch left by Kikyo's damning arrow. She couldn't count the number of times the thought of going back to the feudal era had crossed her mind, but now that her chance was finally here, she couldn't bear to leave her home.

"It's been so long, I feel like I wouldn't have any place with you guys, even for a little bit," she admitted quietly. "I'm scared to go back and see that everyone's changed and nothing is how I remember it. I'm scared that _I_ changed too much and I'm not the Kagome you guys used to know."

And it was the truth; she was horrified of Sango and Miroku and Shippo seeing what an introverted and depressing person she had become. She was petrified that Inuyasha already thought less of her after seeing how awkward things still were with her family, and she was most frightened that she would feel out of place everywhere and have nowhere to go. Inuyasha was an adult now, with a wife and children to raise, and here she could barely take care of herself.

Inuyasha had been silent the whole time she kept her back to him, watching as the girl he had remembered so fondly seemed to wither away.

"Everyone's changed, Kagome. That's life. You've changed too, and it's understandable. I tell my kids all the time that change is good and that everything happens for a reason. Might not be my place to say, but your family loves you, they just don't get what you're going through because this life in this time is all they know."

His words struck a nerve in her core and resonated through her bones. All these years she had felt unloved and unwelcome because her family hadn't asked her why she was back, or much of anything related to her travels to the past. She had thought it was because they were upset at her disappearance for two years, but now she realized it was because they just didn't understand what she needed and didn't want to cause her pain by asking too many questions. They had just accepted she was back and tried as best as they could to integrate her back into their lives. And she had selfishly rejected every attempt at reaching out. For once, Kagome felt sorry for someone other than herself. She turned to face Inuyasha and took in a deep breath. Her gray eyes seemed to light up from inside as she resolved to return from the well a better person this time.

"You're right. This might be my last chance to see everyone, so I'll take it while I have it."

The hanyou breathed a sigh of relief as his shoulders dropped dramatically and the tension left his body.

"Usually my pep talks earn me some tantrums back at home, so I'm glad to know that in ten more years those brats will finally get what I was trying to say. Then I can finally tell 'em I told 'em so!"

She could only laugh at how like himself he still was and took his outstretched hand.


	4. Rumor

**Chapter Three**

 _Western Palace - Kyoto, Japan - October 1511_

"Lord Sesshomaru! Lord Sesshomaru! Lord Sesshomaru! Lord-"

Kouga sighed and held the imp's beak closed as tightly as he could without snapping it right off.

"Sesshomaru is in a pretty important meeting with someone. What are you going on about?"

Jaken gulped and attempted to wiggle his way out of the wolf lord's grasp. His arms flailed wildly and the Staff of Two Heads nearly took an eye out so Kouga released his hold with a rather stern warning.

"If you so much as _breathe_ too loud, I will throw you back into the swamp you were pulled from and make sure you never come back up. Now _very quietly_ , tell me why you're so worked up."

The toad straightened his clothes and puffed out his chest in a futile attempt to keep his pride. Ever since the ookami had come into lordship, life had somehow gotten even more hellish than it was before. Rin had gone off and married Lord Sesshomaru's pathetic hanyou brother, leaving the number of people who respected him at zero. Then, as if it wasn't enough that he had been dragged around the whole of Japan for one quest, suddenly Lord Sesshomaru wanted to go and take the entire North and dragged him straight into the battlefield! After that debacle he hadn't even had so much as one good night's sleep before he was shipped off back to the North to check on the castle.

' _I'm getting too old for this,'_ Jaken thought irritably. ' _Taking orders from this mangy wolf and his two babbling friends! Hopefully my lord will return to his senses and stop allowing them into his home!'_

A sharp rap at his skull startled him from his thoughts and he looked with accusing eyes at Kouga, who still hadn't put away his fist.

"You were in such a hurry to bother Sesshomaru but you dozed off for ten minutes thinking about what a nuisance I am?"

Jaken's already bulbous eyes bulged even further as he blanched and flailed his arms around, denying the accusation and swearing up and down that he had thought no such thing.

Kouga tried to hide the look of smug satisfaction on his tanned features. He wasn't as sharp as Sesshomaru, but it wasn't hard to see the mild contempt running across Jaken's face. He had gotten used to the imp and, if Kouga were completely honest, Jaken wasn't all that bad when you just ignored the constant babbling.

"If you _must_ know, I have been informed of a possible uprising forming in the North! Rumors are circulating of a demon named…" Jaken peered around conspiratorially before motioning for Kouga to bend down. "…named Raizen."

Kouga's ears perked. He'd heard the name here and there, but hadn't thought it was important enough to look into. Obviously all the talk and these apparent rumors were leading up to something, whether big or small, and this was definitely cause for immediate investigation.

"What else?"

Jaken ushered him into an empty guest room and placed the Staff of Two Heads at the door to seal the sound with a barrier.

"Raizen is said to be a Mazoku; they were an ancient clan of devils who hid in the sleeves of Izanagi's robes as he returned from Yomi-no-kuni and were thus released onto Earth. The kami battled the Mazoku and were successful in driving them off the edge of the earth. They were long thought to be extinct but Raizen claims to be descended from those terrible beasts and wishes to envelop the world in complete darkness as it was in the beginning! These unsettling rumors speak of opening a portal to the land of the dead and releasing his clansmen to devour any living being."

The fact that these rather detailed rumors made it back to Jaken's ears was deeply disturbing and raised a flag in Kouga's mind that things may have already been put in motion.

"Alright, go back to whatever you were doing and I'll take care of this."

Jaken sputtered and choked down any complaints he had as Kouga shot him one last look before exiting the room.

'Raizen, Mazoku, hell-demons, wants to kill everyone and everything…'

Kouga repeated the sentence over and over as he raced toward Sesshomaru's office. The old dog probably wouldn't like it, but his meeting would have to be interrupted. He fidgeted in front of the door to the main study and willed his shivering tail to stop. He cleared his throat and slowly knocked on the lacquered red pine. There was no answer, but Kouga could hear the soft jingle of a woman's laughter and some low murmurs.

"Enter, Kouga."

The Southern Lord winced and carefully slid open the shoji screen before tiptoeing inside and closing the door behind him. He kept his blue eyes to the ground as he bent in a low bow.

"Sorry to interrupt you and your guest, but I have some urgent information that you might want to hear."

He stayed in his hunched position until he saw small toes peeking out from under a strip of yellow in his peripheral.

"Hello Kouga-sama!"

Rin smiled the same toothy grin he had seen every year for the last eight years and pulled him up to his full height. The wolf was always surprised when she smiled at him with such happiness, especially after he had been informed of her past experience with his tribe, but it was a welcome he always gladly accepted.

"Rin-chan, what brings you here? Not that I don't like seeing you around," he quickly added.

The young woman of twenty-one years took his arm and led him to sit facing a stoic Western Lord. Sesshomaru did _not_ look happy at _all_. In fact, every hair on Kouga's body seemed to rise on edge to warn him of the increasingly suffocating amount of youki in the room. He winced and tried with little difficulty to avoid eye contact while Rin folded her legs under her and settled onto the thick blue cushion on the ground.

"My husband went to find Kagome-sama, so I came to visit for a day or two while he was gone," she stated simply.

"Some tea or sake, Kouga-sama?"

He opened his mouth to reply but snapped it shut when he realized what Rin had said.

"Huh?"


	5. Reikai

**Chapter Four**

 _Main Lobby - Reikai - October 2011_

" _We are on alert for the resurgence of the Shikon no Tama."_

All four members of the Reikai Tantei waited at the appointed meeting place for their blue-haired spirit guide to summon a portal. Koenma had called urgent meeting (at sunrise, seriously?) and left them with instructions to meet Botan and that cryptic message. Yusuke tried to ignore the biting cold as he picked at a hangnail on his ring finger and cast a sideways glance at an incredibly serious Hiei and Kurama. The two demons seemed to grow even more tense with every second that ticked but he couldn't understand why.

"This thing is just some kind of artifact, right? I'm pretty sure we've rescued more dangerous things than this," he boasted.

"Can't you ever shut up, detective?" Hiei sneered in response.

"Well what crawled up your ass and died? Jesus, man, it's just another retrieval mission!"

The fire demon wished silently to himself that Botan would just show up, take them to the location, and allow them to be done with this blasted mission already. If it could even be 'done,' that is.

"Yusuke, Kuwabara, I need you to listen carefully. The Shikon no Tama is not some kind of smoke-and-mirrors artifact. It is an old- _very, very old_ -relic. You two were born and raised human so I can't expect you to know, but the Shikon is something far older than the Three Worlds. Do you understand? This is an ancient magic that, under any circumstances, _cannot_ be released back into the world," Kurama patiently explained. "This is a mission that we must complete with our lives if it proves to be true. We can only hope it was a mistake and the readings Koenma received were incorrect."

Kuwabara squinted his eyes and rubbed his slightly stubbly chin. The Reikai, wrong?

"Isn't their system pretty fool-proof? I mean, it can tell Yusuke is S-class even though his powers are dormant most of the time, and it can tell the difference between you in your Youko form and your human form. This isn't any old mission. Koenma was pretty serious when he assigned us to this."

The kitsune rubbed the bridge of his nose and let the sharp morning air burn his nostrils. Kuwabara was correct, of course; there was almost no way this was a false alarm. The Reikai measured possible threats by monitoring a spike in energy levels while also factoring in the duration, location, and then cross-referencing the reading with the vast database accrued over several hundred years. This system had not once been incorrect and for it to be so now would be nothing short of a miracle. Still, he hoped for that incredibly slim chance. He had been a kit at the Separation of Worlds and didn't remember much, but the stories that used to give him nightmares as a pup remained vivid in his memory.

"Why is the damn thing even in the Ningenkai? I figure if it's been hiding this long it would probably be in here or in the Makai," Yusuke grumbled. "No demon is living in the human world without us knowing about it. I don't know who would even have that kind of thing in their possession! But then again, nobody's going to go running around telling people 'hey, I have something that could destroy the Earth'!"

A cheerful 'pop' interrupted them before the area filled with a light smoke.

"Thanks for being early Botan! We were only waiting here for an hour!" Kuwabara sniffled and wiped his runny nose on his already-stiff blue sleeve.

"Well I thought that you guys might want some research materials so I took the liberty of grabbing everything I could find! This might be a long mission, so you'll have plenty of time to throw yourselves into reading; there's a lot of history behind this thing and you'll probably want to know all of it."

Their eternally bubbly friend seemed untroubled by the mission and they all thought dryly to themselves that regardless of what happened, she would still be doing her job of escorting the dead to the afterlife. Botan smiled brightly at them before creating a portal to their destination.

"Well? You guys ready?"

They all nodded solemnly and walked through without hesitation. The familiar weightlessness and comfortingly warm air always made him feel like he was in the womb, Kuwabara thought fleetingly. When it started to get chilly again they knew they were close and braced themselves for landing. The sun had risen now and everyone squinted at the sudden brightness invading their sight.

"What the hell is this?"

"It's...a...shrine."

"Welcome to the Higurashi Shrine! May I ask what a bunch of demons are doing trespassing at this hour?"


	6. Rational

**Chapter Five: Rational**

 _Western Palace - Kyoto, Japan - October 1511_

"You remember Kagome-sama don't you?"

Rin took his arm and guided Kouga to the extra cushion to the left of Sesshomaru.

"K-what?"

His tail began to wag.

"Do not be so overjoyed, Kouga. The return of the miko will only bring trouble."

Kouga could distinctly feel Sesshomaru's disapproving glare burrowing into the side of his face but couldn't bring himself to be anything other than happy. Kagome? Higurashi? Higurashi Kagome, Protector and Miko of the Shikon no Tama, The Girl Who Travelled Through Time, The Former Future Kouga's Woman? After her disappearance, she was just back in everyone's lives? He shut his eyes tightly and willed away the involuntary thumping of his tail while Rin's offer of sake fell on deaf ears. There were just way too many questions in his head right now, most of which revolved around the fact that Rin and Sesshomaru seemed so nonchalant at the news. Hell, Sesshomaru was even reading a book now!

"How long has everyone known about this? Why are you guys so calm? Why is she back after ten years? That's, like, a lot of time for humans, right? I mean, Rin-chan has kids now so that's kind of a long time..."

Rin shot him an irritated look (learned from Sesshomaru, Kouga more-than-suspected) and yanked her sleeves to her elbows as she fixed her hair. Her thin fingers weaved the long brown locks into a simple braid and she pursed her lips for a few moments before speaking.

"Kaede is gravely ill and her last wish was to see all of them one last time. Inuyasha wanted to at least try-he said he had a 'good gut feeling' about it, so I sent him off late last night and I haven't seen him since. I decided to come here on Kirara so I could inform Sesshomaru-sama. I thought he might want to know what's happened since it may have a rather large impact on life as we know it."

Grumbling, the young Southern Lord slumped and sat back up with a deep sigh. Rin might have once been young and carefree, but Sesshomaru had only educated her with the best tutors once they had managed to settle down after the war. Of course the first thing she would think about was how people would react. But...it was Kagome, how could he possibly be anything but overjoyed? And everything had worked out after she left! As he went down the line of how everyone's lives had (happily) turned out, his tail dropped silently to the floor.

"We need to make sure she says hi to everyone and goes right back," he conceded with a deep sigh.

"So you have also caught wind of the Mazoku," Sesshomaru stated plainly. It was almost painfully obvious to him that Kouga had something pressing on his mind and with nothing important having happened in the last three months, this rumor was the only thing it could be. The Great Dog General held his cup up to Rin, who swiftly refilled it with sake, and swirled it once before emptying the contents. "The miko has decided to return at a rather distressing time. One can only hope her magical well will allow her through lest she hinder our efforts to smother this uprising."

Kouga straightened his armor over his haori and straightened his back. As much as he hated to, there was really only one course of action to be taken in this situation.

"If the well lets her through to this time, then it'll let her go home. I'll go and make sure she is undetected if she arrives. I miss her, but I can't put everyone through another war because of selfishness."

"We will all go," the dog demon said. "Whether she did on purpose or not, she has helped us keep our peace by taking the Shikon with her. We should pay our respects. We will leave at dusk."

With that, they sat in solemn silence and waited for the sun to set.


	7. Reminder

**Chapter Six: Reminder**

 _Kaede's Village - Tokyo, Japan - October 1511_

"Thank you young miss!"

"Thank you young miss!"

"Thank you young miss!"

Miroku watched fondly from underneath the shade of a tree as his daughter passed out small satchels of salves and sutras for the villagers. Many of them had been injured when a boar youkai trampled through the fields looking for food, so nine year old Kyoko had insisted that she stay up all night to write the sutras (though Miroku had re-done most of them to fix her spelling while she dozed off) and wake early the next morning to pick the herbs and pound them into a paste. She had already been to everyone who was hurt and was now passing out any remainders to whoever wanted one.

"Just in case," she had said. "Because you never know when it might happen again."

He really couldn't be any luckier, he thought to himself. He had married the love of his life and she had given him two strong, fine boys, and one dutiful daughter. He was now the head of the village and was able to settle down-something he wasn't able to do once his father had passed over two decades ago. He lived with his good friend Inuyasha, who was also blessed with a wonderful life, and Shippo, who was finally able to dedicate time solely to growing his powers. The first few years had been somewhat difficult, of course, with Kagome-sama returning to her home and the well not working, but they had managed to pull through together. Much of the first two years were spent helping people rebuild homes and bury the dead. That had been an experience almost as tiring as trekking around Japan on foot for five years, but Miroku could only be glad for all the support they had received. The timing of the Emperor's decree had been perfect as well; the Inu-tachi managed to avoid traveling through the uprisings and were most fortunate to have Lord Sesshomaru and Kouga's help. They had stationed several troops in each of the villages within their jurisdiction and saved the North, West, and South from most of the massacres that ravaged the unprepared East. There were small riots, of course, but most were stopped almost as soon as they started and nobody dared to challenge Sesshomaru once they realized he was serious about keeping the peace. In the two years since the finalization of the interspecies laws, things had gone quite well, the monk mused. Living so peacefully was also a curse: every day that he saw Sango and their children was a reminder of all that he and countless other had endured for so long. He was thankful that he would never have to fear being consumed by the kazaana, but with so little to do everything seemed to drag on longer every day.

"Father? Have you drafted the letter to Lord Kouga? We should inform him of the damage and perhaps seek reparations?"

Miroku stood with a groan and dusted off his purple robes. His staff jingled as he picked it up from the ground. Smiling, he held his hand out to Kyoko, who took it without hesitation and started the walk back with him to the shrine. He noticed the townspeople securing the sutras to their homes and made sure to sneak a sly glance at his eldest, whose violet eyes sparkled with silent pride. He found he always had to remind himself that although she acted like an adult she was still a child. Miroku gave a deep sigh of contentment and squeezed her hand just a little tighter.

"Yes, I suppose we should send word to Lord Kouga, shouldn't we? And we still haven't picked the vegetables for dinner yet!"

They stopped at the market and purchased ingredients for Miroku's fish stew. The pair continued on their way, greeting everyone and performing small blessings when Kyoko suddenly paused and tugged on Miroku's sleeve. He looked ahead to see his exhausted wife and sons trudging up the walkway to their home, dragging their feet and their weapons behind them.

"Beautiful wife of mine," Miroku called out cheerfully.

Sango turned her head to him and gave him a look that conveyed her mood.

"Inuyasha's going to get an earful, hm? Where is he? I haven't seen him all day. And where are the two troublemakers?"

The demon slayer gasped and dropped her hiraikotsu. She cursed to herself and called to Kirara, who came mewling from inside the house.

"I sent them to meditate and I forgot about them! It's been almost an hour!"

Miroku opened his mouth to placate her but was interrupted when Sango and the boys flew off with Kirara in a burst of flames. The man sighed and turned his attention to Kyoko, who began pulling on his sleeve as she stared at the Hill of the Goshinboku.

"Uncle Inuyasha has returned...but who is that strangely dressed woman with him?"


	8. Reprimand

Chapter Seven: Reprimand

 _Kaede's Village - Tokyo, Japan - October 1511_

"Onii-chan, how much longer?"

"I don't know, I-chan," the boy answered. "I think we really messed up this time. Usually they tell us to stop after twenty minutes but it's been almost three hours and we're still here. I wonder if Koji and Koichi are still meditating at the other spot," he sighed.

The two siblings sighed and continued their meditation under the roaring waterfall. The air was getting colder as evening approached, their clothes were practically fused to their skin, and their bodies were numb from the roaring currents beating down on their backs. Worst of all, their furry, triangular ears were completely flattened against the tops of their heads and had been since they started. An exercise in patience and silence, Aunt Sango had said, and punishment for complaining during training.

"We shouldn't have bragged so much," Izayoi admitted. "Aunt Sango is trying to teach us to be humble and careful of our words."

"Okaa-san always says we have otou-san's mouth, remember? It's not technically our fault."

Izayoi turned brown eyes toward Hiroto's golden ones and glared. He slapped his silver bangs out of his face and stuck his tongue out at her.

"What are you looking at?"

"It's your fault! You always have to say things like that instead of agreeing! You're the one who takes it too far!"

"Me? You have more of dad in you than I do! I just look like him!"

"Liar! Dad always gets in trouble and so do you! I don't want to be like him!"

The two siblings bickered, eventually getting up to get physical. Hiroto grit his teeth as his seven year old sister punched him in the stomach; he wasn't going to stoop to her level and hit someone two years younger than him. His resolve weakened considerably with every kick to the shin, slap to the head, and finger to the eye. Finally, he stopped trying to swat her hands away and used his superior speed to push her into the lake only to have her tiny hand shoot out at the last second to grab hold of his ankle and pull him in with her. They continued to fight until a loud cough interrupted them. They looked up to see Sango and her two also-soaking sons standing at the edge of the water, arms crossed and staring at them expectantly.

"H-hi Aunt Sango?" Hiroto tried weakly

Sango rubbed the bridge of her nose and bit the inside of her cheek. She had known Inuyasha for fifteen years now but had never imagined his children with sweet Rin-chan would be so difficult. Even though he had matured considerably since she had met him, Sango couldn't help thinking that his stubbornness must run thick in his blood. Hiroto and Izayoi were beautiful, talented, and smart-there was no denying that-but sometimes she felt like throwing her hands in the air and going home instead of finishing their training. Today had been one such day; the two had started to complain about having to train on such an unusually hot morning, much to everyone's irritation, so Sango had finally had enough and sent them to meditate to cool off. Of course, that had been several hours ago and the taijiya had been in a bad mood for so long that she had forgotten what (or who) had caused her bad mood in the first place.

"You guys...you guys are both like your dad. He was just like you when I met him!"

"Aunt Sango," Hiroto interjected, "Giving us a punishment is one thing but comparing us to dad and telling us we're exactly like him is just cruel. You shouldn't say those kinds of things."

Hiroto gloated about the supposed cleverness of his comment while Sango tried to calm herself. She thought about getting upset just to scare him, but decided that she would let Inuyasha deal with it when he came back from wherever it was that he had gone off to in the first place. She had just finished that thought when the hairs on the back of her neck stood up and her senses turned on high alert.

"Hiroto, Izayoi, get out of the water and stay close to me! Koichi," she called to her oldest son. "Keep your hand on your sickle. Koji," she yelled to the younger, "Get out the sutras your father gave you and try to keep up a shield! This isn't a practice, so everyone keep calm and remember what I taught you!"

The feeling of dread continued to expand from her belly to her chest, constricting her breathing and only causing her to become more frantic. 'Snake youkai? How did they sneak up on us so silently?' The kids were frightened but remained vigilant and ready to strike using the techniques she had taught them. Koichi's knuckles were white as he gripped the sickle he had strapped to his hip while Koji's brown eyes were as wide as the long sword he carried. Izayoi and Hiroto were trying to catch a scent in the air but could recognize what kind of youkai it was. The trees were thick around the small clearing and the roar of the waterfall hindered their ability to locate the threat.

"It...it smells like rot...? Aunt Sango, I can't tell what it is!" Izayoi's voice was a buzz in her ears.

Sango clenched her jaw and made the decision to load everyone up onto Kirara. It was a risky decision because if the demon could follow them up into the air, she was putting the children at risk if they fell. But staying on the ground with nothing but her nine year old's shaky barrier. She mentally slapped herself for leaving hiraikotsu in the village. After standing on guard for what felt like an hour, the demon disappeared as soon as it came. She turned to her children and quickly ushered them onto Kirara.

"Sorry girl," she apologized to the large cat. "We need to get out of here as fast as you can." Kirara growled in understanding.

Sango took one wary glance back into the area and held on tightly to the children. She would definitely be talking to her husband and making a personal trip to Sesshomaru and Kouga.


	9. Ruckus

Chapter Eight: Ruckus

 _Higurashi Shrine - Tokyo, Japan - October 2011_

"Trespassing? Hehe, no, no, we're just trying to visit the shrine! And what's this about demons? You guys are so committed to this act! Haha, what a silly greeting," Kuwabara stuttered nervously.

Yusuke shot his partner a deadpan look and stared at the young man who stood at the top of the thirty-or-so steps that led to the actual shrine. He seemed harmless enough except for the whole demon thing; if the guy hadn't said anything, Yusuke would never have been suspicious. Around twenty five years old? Definitely under thirty and kind of tall (just a few inches shy of Kuwabara, maybe?). Standard dark hair, dark eyes, and the basic robes of someone who worked at a shrine. He didn't really have a memorable face, either, but the smile he wore was definitely unsettling the crap out of Yusuke. The detective exchanged looks with Kurama while Hiei stood unwavering.

"We're here from the Reikai to investigate suspicious activity on these grounds," Kurama politely explained. "We don't mean to trespass and would like your permission to enter and collect what we need. We should be out of your hair soon." They could find out information on him later, the fox thought to himself. Right now, the Shikon.

"Wow, that was very diplomatic of you! You must be some kind of snake or kitsune! They're the only two who would think to talk their way out of something like this. Unfortunately for you punks I'm not falling for it and you'll need to get back to your tiny baby boss asap and tell him the bad news."

Kurama and Hiei simply stared while Yusuke and Kuwabara bristled at the man's response. The man was overly cheerful-and a little rude, Kuwabara thought-about turning them away. Yusuke turned to his team to talk to them.

"This guy is seriously starting to creep me out with his smiling. I know Koenma is stressed out over this, but we need to either force our way in right now or come back with Koenma's permission to force our way in. I don't want to cause a scene, but we're sort of out of options."

Hiei remained silent through all this, surveying the mysterious man who had forbid them from entering. Clearly nothing remarkable, but no human should know so much about the Reikai, if at all. He didn't smell or feel like a demon, either, but Hiei wouldn't put it past the Reikai to misplace or lose track of one here and there. In one swift motion he sped up the stairs and grabbed a handful of the green haori the man wore only for it to disintegrate in his hands along with the rest of his target.

"I tried to be nice, but you're forcing me to be mean, you little shit," a disembodied voice boomed. "If you keep me here too long, I'll only have an hour left to sweep up all these leaves and get everything ready for the day!"

The three other detectives ascended the steps and stood at the top, looking for the source of the sound. Hiei was beyond pissed that he had been fooled and sped around the perimeter of the shrine while Kurama tried to use the plethora of plants in the vicinity to reach out and feel around for the man. Suddenly, the vines and roots he had so easily controlled turned against him and wrapped him securely in their hold. He looked around for anything he could use to free himself, but gave up resisting when he saw the fire demon wrapped up next to him.

"Trying to manipulate my plants? I wrote that trick!"

"Hey! Stop hiding and come out! Fight us like a real man!" Kuwabara's spirit sword came shooting out of his fist and he looked around for any sign of their foe.

"Yeah, fight us face to face!" Yusuke was getting pretty fed up with this guy toying with them and started to charge up his famous spirit gun.

"I don't have to fight you," the voice said again. "You guys are too easy! Too young! Too eager to fight! Your fox friend was on the right path by being polite, but now I'm getting tired of playing with you and I'm going to tell you again to leave."

Yusuke and Kuwabara yelped as the ground seemed to open up and swallow them, leaving them bodiless heads in the concrete. As much as they struggled, they couldn't feel their arms or legs-just nothing. A pair of wooden geta appeared in their range of vision and they both turned as much as they could to look at the owner.

"You jerks think you can go gallivanting around someone else's property? You think trespassing is some kind of joke? Because I don't take lightly to people with bad intentions coming here to terrorize these nice folks. I don't know how many more times or ways I can say that to you, but you need to leave."

The whoever-he-was pulled a piece of paper out of his haori and handed it to Yusuke, who found that he and his teammates were miraculously freed (how did someone get spit out of concrete and not realize it, he wondered?). He hesitantly took the pristine sheet, feeling a hard wax seal keeping it closed. Would it blow up if he tried to peel it off? The stranger turned to walk away, but not before a few parting words.

"Take that to Koenma and tell him to leave us alone. I don't want to have another altercation with him and obviously he needs to be reminded of our agreement. You pipsqueaks can go now."

Kurama held out an arm, blocking Hiei from attempting another attack. 'Let's come back at a later time. It was a mistake to drop in here without scouting out the area first. We'll confer with Koenma and return when we're more prepared.' Hiei grit his teeth and took his hand off the hilt of his sword. 'Fine. But I am not going to waste my time like this again.' This time it was the fox's turn to clench his jaw. Why was everyone on this team so childish? He breathed deeply and dusted off his suit.

"Yusuke, call Botan and have her come get us."

"What? We're just going to leave? We don't even know who this guy is!" Kuwabara's yelling was making him almost as blue as his jeans and Yusuke was getting there just as quickly.

"Yeah, we can't just leave! What's wrong with you? Koenma sent us here for that stupid jewel and we're going to get to the bottom of it!"

The sun was higher in the sky now and the warmth of its rays made them all realize how cold and tired they were. The man, however, seemed unphased. He looked briefly over his shoulder at the detectives and smirked.

"I'll help you finish your quest. Give that letter to Koenma," he repeated. "And then poof, mission over. You're welcome."

And with that, he continued his walk back to the shrine and left the four confused and upset. Yusuke pulled his communication device out of his pocket.

"Botan, come pick us up at the Higurashi shrine. No, no answers yet, just questions for Koenma."

The reaper came within seconds and did a double-take at their tattered and dirty clothing.

"My, my, looks like you guys had quite the ball here!"

"Just take us back to the office, Botan."


End file.
